Representational images are very useful as a tool for providing and presenting large amounts of information in a concise and understandable manner for a wide range of analytical activities involved in industry, including, for example, data analysis, short and long range planning, statistical analysis, projections, forecasting, strategic analysis, decision making, scheduling, routing, strategic planning, change implementation and verification and quality assurance and control. Representational images may range, for example, from graphical charts, such as ven diagrams and pie charts to plotted information, such as, scatter diagrams.
There are many custom and off-the shelf software programs aimed at providing 2-dimensional or virtual 3-dimensional visualization of data in various formats in order to allow for an accurate and enhanced ability to analyze the data presented.
In the financial sector, with the continual growth in the amounts of information available for analysis and increasing complexity of the factors necessary for a proper analysis, and with the concern for accuracy and thoroughness, many institutions have designed or implemented systems to conglomerate the large amounts of data necessary for analysis into single or multiple charts and diagrams utilizing 2-dimensional or virtual 3-dimensional visualization techniques. This information may be used for financial analysis, risk analysis, forecasting, risk arbitrage, trend analysis, etc.
In the geological exploration sector, sonar and high frequency scanning radar as well as photography is used to locate and identify high potential geological formations of various desired elements. The information generated by these tools may be presented as 2-dimentional or virtual 3-dimensional images. Such information may also be used for mapping and remote location and identification.
Each of these systems and techniques are severely limited since the forms of visualization supported by such systems and techniques do not provide for the concise and effective presentation of sufficient amounts of the available data at any one time, thereby preventing a full and complete analysis of the data.
Despite the increase in the amounts of data able to be presented using enhanced 2-dimensional and virtual 3-dimensional visualization techniques, there remains much room for additional improvement and further optimization in the presentation and visualization of such data. The present invention provides for further optimization in the presentation and visualization of data through the use of representational images, including holographic representational images.
For example, information relating to a company's business may include a plurality of variables relating to customer purchases, such as, for example, demographics, including, age, location, sex, time of year, price, etc. Using a standard 2-dimensional or virtual 3-dimensional graph or chart, only three (or perhaps four) of these factors may be included in the visualization, thereby limiting the analysis able to be performed. To engage in a full analysis, multiple chart or graphs would have to be provided, each containing only three or four parts of the totality of the information available.
These are just some of the many areas where schematic diagrams or representational images are currently being used, and where improvements are possible and feasible through the use of representational images, including holographic representational images according to the present invention.